‘I wanted to scream’: Growing conflict in Congo drives sexual assault against displaced women
By JUSTIN KABUMBA and ZANE IRWIN
Associated Press
BULENGO, Congo (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of women and girls have been displaced over the past year in eastern Congo amid fighting by more than 130 armed groups. That leaves them vulnerable to sexual assault, which is on the rise. French aid group Doctors Without Borders says more than twice as many women in recent months have sought treatment for sexual assault in some displacement camps outside the eastern city of Goma. Shelters are little more than plastic sheets. One survivor of sexual violence now sleeps with her children huddled around her in an attempt to protect herself.
